


A day at the beach

by KeybladeRiku



Category: Love Live! Sunshine!!
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-28
Updated: 2017-03-28
Packaged: 2018-10-12 08:55:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,544
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10487040
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KeybladeRiku/pseuds/KeybladeRiku
Summary: A short piece based on the following prompt:youchika: "I couldn't save you."https://en.shindanmaker.com/536171





	

“What the hell’s going on in he –“ the man growled as he rushed up towards the open door.

He was stopped dead in his tracks, however, as his eyes came upon the absolute mess that was the room before him. He had rushed upstairs after he had heard the sounds of crashing, things being roughed up and thrown around. What he hadn’t expected was to find his daughter, You Watanabe, standing in the middle of a room of destroyed and trashed medals, trophies and memorabilia. She looked up at him and sighed, a heavy, burdened sigh that seemed to dispel all the weight of the world. He walked over, cautiously, avoiding the mess of debris on the floor, and brought his daughter into his arms.

“It’s okay,” he said, soothingly, holding her close, reassuring her as best he could. “Why don’t you tell me what happened?”

So she did.

The day had started like any other, if she was being completely honest. It was a simple, warm summer Saturday; it involved an early rise and the trek over to Chika’s place. The two girls had recently decided to be more open with their feelings, resulting in them beginning a relationship. Truthfully, they had worried that the rest of Aqours wouldn’t approve, but they didn’t realize how wrong they were. The announcement was met with snickers and shouts of congratulations, however unenthusiastic; it would seem that everyone was simply waiting, rather impatiently, for them to just get to it already.

Today was going to be a date down at the beach. Though they both conceded that it’s something they’ve always done together, there was something about its consistency that made it appealing. They had it all planned out, at least in so far as its possible to plan such a date: ice cream, kisses, cuddles, swimming. Nothing out of the ordinary, seeing as they’d agreed that they weren’t going to do anything too new or weird until they’d actually gotten used to the relationship.

Used to it. Such a strange, entertaining concept to You. As far as she was concerned, she and Chika had always and will always be together; nothing could really change that, try as the world might. Today was going to be just one more success in a long line of them. She was convinced of that, convinced of the fact that now that it was real, their love was untouchable, indestructible.

You’s face held a radiant smile as Chika opened the door to greet her, almost falling into her arms in excitement. The girls shared a kiss, gentle yet passionate, until Chika felt herself pulling back in shame under her mother’s watchful gaze. Chika’s parents were more than happy for her, and fully encouraged it, but she couldn’t help but feel embarrassed at any public expression of her affections.

Some part of her, she felt, wanted to keep You for herself and only herself; a deep sort of romantic greed that had spawned in her the moment she had said yes. With a wave back towards her mother, Chika grabbed hold of You’s hand and charged out the door, away from her house in a sprint that showed the fruits of labour for all their training.

“In a rush?” You teased as she pulled Chika into an embrace once they had finally stopped.

“It’s not my fault,” she smiled, “you don’t make me want to take things slow.”

You backed up against a wall as Chika fell into her, their lips locking once more, continuing from where they’d started before. They found it thrilling, a fiery-hot rush that cascaded through their veins every time their lips met. They let the kiss linger, soft, quick pecks in between longer, languorous ones.

“Let’s go,” Chika whispered softly, her warm breath curling tantalizingly over You’s skin.

“Yeah,” she agreed, sighing sweetly as they broke their embrace.

For all the world, as they interlaced their fingers and began a slow, steady walk towards their destination, they were two girls in love. There was a tenderness to the way that they held hands, the way they kissed, the way their eyes met shyly whenever they thought the other wasn’t looking. It was a romance that was fresh, beautiful and pure; one that, given enough nurturing, would outlast the aging of their bodies and minds.

They tossed their clothes to the side with a sigh once they got to the beach, smiling knowingly at each other. For some reason, it was a tradition they’d developed long ago; once they were down to just their bathing suits, at a signal they both somehow understood, they would race towards the water. When Chika’s soft smile turned into a full-blown grin, You knew, and they both ran as fast they could towards the sea.

“Cheater!” You called with a laugh as Chika dove headfirst towards the water, touching it an inkling of a second before You made it.

“I won fair and square,” Chika countered as she stood, wrapping her arms around You. “And here’s my prize!” she announced as she pulled You into a deeper portion of the water before falling backwards with her, submerging them both.

They came up shortly after, giggling as Chika gasped for air, You gloating due to her increased lung capacity from her extracurriculars. They could see in the distance that there was a storm coming, but they didn’t quite care. They’d practically lived in these waters since they were kids; they knew its temperaments, its behaviour. There wasn’t really a cause for concern.

The two crashed onto the sand side-by-side, sighing contentedly in unison. The sunlight was temporarily disturbed at times by passing clouds as the distant storm grew closer, but the girls remained unbothered. They spent hours together; laughing, tossing each other around in the water, playing with each other’s hair. The day was as normal as it could have been, but the fact that they were sharing it, that they were here together, made it as special as it could have ever possibly been.

“Ah,” You exclaimed, looking up as a few droplets of rain began to fall. “Chika,” she called towards the girl who was swimming around blissfully, “be careful.”

“You got it!”

She had to admit that she was slightly concerned, with the rain starting to fall, the sky darkening, and the water acting up a little bit. They’ve been through this before, she reassured herself; if anything was truly wrong, they’d feel it. Their sense of communion with their town, their surroundings would surely alert either of them to any possible disasters…right?

“Hey, I’m going to get food,” You announced, shaking off the fear as she turned and walked away.

She made her trip quick, part of her worried, but mostly wanting to spend as little time apart from Chika as possible. She rushed back as the rain picked up, deciding that her and Chika should just pack up and head home, enjoy the rest of the day peacefully in one of their rooms, going over routines, talking about anything. Who knows, who cares, as long as she and Chika could do it together.

She came back just in time to see a threatening wave building up behind her lover who, somehow, in her foolish positivity, was still just playing around in the water.

“CHIKA!” she screamed as it reared up behind the orange-haired girl, whose head tilted in curiosity, and crashed down, dragging her out to sea.

You’s mind went blank. She dropped the bag of goods that she’d purchased and, against her better judgment, ran towards the water. She jumped in without a second thought, without considering that, she, too, might be lost to the harsh mistress that is Mother Nature. She dove, deep, went out as far as she dared to venture but her lover, her lover with the radiant smile who had kissed her not even an hour earlier, was nowhere to be found. She resorted to the only other option that came to mind, fighting against the roiling waters to get back to shore. She arrived, breathless, at the nearest home and called the authorities, begging for anyone to save her Chika.

“And then?” her father asked, concerned, as the detailing of You’s day came to a close.

“I answered their questions,” she answered between sobs, “and then I came home.”

“Then went straight to your room without even saying hello,” he recalled, running through the events, “and did this,” he gestured towards the mess that was her room.

The mess that, suddenly, made all too much sense.

“I couldn’t save her, dad,” You explained. “All these years, all these trophies and medals and awards, and when it mattered most, I couldn’t swim fast enough, I couldn’t dive deep enough, I couldn’t conquer the waves and bring her home. It’s all so meaningless.”

You buried her face deeper into her father’s shoulder, breathing in deeply. She dared a peek over him, at the one remaining reminder of her achievements, the one that she couldn’t bear to discard. A framed picture, standing on her dresser, of Chika attacking her with a hug as she accepted a medal after a swimming competition.

“All this…” she began, crying once more,

“…and I couldn’t save you.”


End file.
